Girl Meets Family
by theprofessorandmaryann
Summary: Maya leaves home after being continuously and severely beaten. Shawn finds her and saves her and the more time they spend together, the closer they become as a family. Will Maya- and Shawn -get the family they deserve, want, and need?
1. With 20 Dollars and an Apple

Maya's eyes fluttered open and she looked at the ceiling of her small bedroom. It was blank, and so were her walls. All except for splotches of red here and there…

blood.

The red splotches were blood, left there from when Maya's mother Katy had brought home some guy, got really serious, and he stayed with them. Then, most times- depending on how good of a guy he was – he would treat Maya very badly. Maya remembered the amazing Christmas she had shared with Riley and her family the night before. The Matthews were her real family, it seemed, and she wished it could be that way all the time. She had especially enjoyed meeting Shawn (although she certainly hadn't showed it). She had felt a special connection with him.

The worst Maya had ever received was a beating in which she was so severely bruised she had had to stay home from school for a week until they went away. But what made her even more upset was the fact that her mother beat her too.

Katy hadn't always beat Maya. But one night, her mind fogged with heavy liquor, she came to the conclusion that Maya was the reason she could never keep her boyfriends. Not only that, but she was a reminder of the husband who had never really loved her.

She swung her scarred legs over the edge of the bed and slipped her feet into her slippers. She stepped on a creaky floorboard and the noise startled her. She fell backwards and landed with a _thud._

Suddenly, she heard the door to her mother's room swing open.

_Uh-oh…_ she thought. Katy's latest boyfriend, Kirk, did not like to be woken up early, especially not after a long night of drinking. Maya scrambled to get back into bed, but it was too late. Her bedroom door swung open and she felt Kirk grab her by the shirt and throw her to the ground.

The rest was a blur.

When she woke up, her head was throbbing and she could barely move. What hurt most were her legs. She used all her strength to look down and saw a huge gap going down either one. She looked at herself in the full-length mirror and saw how awful she looked; she decided she had had enough. She mustered all her strength to get up and walk out the door.

She left.

No more abuse.

Not for Maya Hart.

She made it as far as central park before she passed out.

Meanwhile, Shawn Hunter wandered aimlessly along a random path as he thought about what Riley had said to him the night before.

_When you come and visit, do you ignore me because I remind you of what you don't have?_

He sighed. She was right.

Then he turned his thoughts to Maya Hart, her best friend. She was definitely Riley's version of him. But he wasn't going to admit it, and he certainly hadn't last night at the party.

Just as he started to think about how in the world Minkus could reproduce with anybody, he heard a small moan. He looked around and found nothing. The sound stopped. Just as he turned to leave he saw Maya lying there, unconscious.

~~à000ß~~

Shawn, with Maya in his arms, buzzed in for the Matthews apartment in the empty lobby of the building.

"Yeah?" came Cory's voice.

"Cor, it's me!" explained Shawn. "I need your help, I'm coming up now."

Shawn pressed the elevator button rapidly as he cradled Maya in his arms. He arrived in front of the Matthews apartment and knocked on the door, hard, loud, and fast.

Shawn heard Cory's voice from inside. "Shawnie!" he exclaimed. "Calm down, you're gonna drill a hole in our door."

he opened the door to see Shawn, with Maya unconscious in his arms. He was so shocked, so overcome with so many unidentifiable emotions.

How?

_Why?_


	2. Shawn's Outburst

**Cory's POV:**

"Oh my God!" I was getting ready to leave for work. Riley and Auggie were at school, and I was running late. I dropped my briefcase and watched as Shawn quickly but carefully laid Maya on the couch.

Hearing all the commotion, Topanga emerged from our bedroom. She was still in her robe and her sleepy eyes were half-closed but flew open at the scene that was currently unfolding in our living room.

"Cory, what happened?!"

I looked to Shawn; he'd brought her there in the first place. "Shawn, take Maya to the hospital. Topanga and I will meet you there. Topi, I'll explain to you- right after Shawn explains it to me…"

**Topanga's POV- At the hospital:**

I sat in the hospital waiting room on the fourth floor with Cory and Shawn on either side of me. Judging by the awkwardness and the uncomfortableness that was mostly rubbing off of Shawn, I had a feeling that we wouldn't be making any small talk to pass the time until the doctors finished examining Maya.

Suddenly, a wave of worry washed over me. Would Maya be alright? I had little doubt about her surviving, but no one knew yet quite how much damage had been done.

Suddenly, a no-nonsense looking nurse came out with a clipboard. "Hart?" she asked. All three of us stood up.

Thoughts about the events that day won my attention over the part of me that was trying to keep my eyes dry and my heart rate below twenty million miles per hour.

When we had arrived at the hospital and Shawn explained how he'd found Maya, Cory and I had been shocked. When the police went to investigate the Hart resident and found that Katy and most of her boyfriends abused Maya, we were heartbroken.

Shawn seemed to be taking this the hardest. Maya and Shawn had a very special relationship, that much we knew. It was also confusing. It seemed as though they liked each other, but were uncomfortable being forced into a conversation with each other. They liked to like each other from a distance.

We followed the tall, black-haired nurse to a room with a clipboard that had many hand-written names of past patients, all scratched out, except for the words 'Hart, Maya Renee' at the bottom.

The nurse opened the door and all three of us went in. I felt my heart explode in my chest as I saw her lying there, looking vulnerable and torn. I looked at Cory. He looked as upset as I felt, but there was something else there.

Anger.

A lot of anger.

I looked at Shawn. His face was blank. It sometimes made me mad that he was so damn good at hiding his emotions. But though they both tried to hide it, it's really not a big surprise that Shawn and Maya are close.

It was Cory who spoke first. "Will she make it?" he asked. The nurse looked at the three of us. Now she seemed to feel sorry for us, which scared me. Was she trying to spare our feelings for what was coming next?

"We're doing what we can."

With that, she left the room.

"_We're doing what we can?!"_ Shawn repeated. "What in the hell is that supposed to mean?"

My eyes popped out of my head when I looked at him. Shawn, he was also so calm and never emotional. This outburst was like looking at a whole new person.

"Shawn, calm down…" my husband comforted his friend. "Cor, I…" before he could finish his sentence, he began crying. He buried his face in his hands and cried; he cried his eyes out.

I looked at Cory. He looked at me. We looked at Shawn.

And we cried, too.

**Riley's POV- going home, with Lucas and Farkle tagging along:**

I walked home with my right arm slung around Farkle and my left hand inside my boyfriend's. Lucas and I have been going out for almost a year now, and today he and Farkle are coming over to see if we can fix something for Maya. She hadn't come to school today. I wouldn't be assuming she was sick if she hadn't texted me saying she was. It was normal for her to skip every once in a while.

"I wonder why your dad wasn't there today, Riley." said Lucas. I giggled. "Why, you miss him, cowboy?"

Lucas looked at me, feigning anger. "Since when are you in on these cowboy jokes?" he asked. "Hey, if Maya isn't here to do it, somebody's got to." I answered.

We arrived at the apartment building and went to my floor. We went down the hall and knocked on the door of my apartment. I was surprised when my Grandma opened the door. "Grandma!" I exclaimed. She looked at me with a seemingly forced smile on her face. Suddenly, she broke into tears and wrapped her arms around me. I looked past her to see my Grandpa, my Aunt Morgan, Uncle Eric, Uncle Josh, Jack and Rachel, and Mr. Feeny. They were all incredibly solemn; it was like a dark storm cloud was hung over each person's head.

My Grandma apologized, released me, and Farkle Lucas and I looked to everyone for an explanation.

I looked at Aunt Morgan. "What's going on?" I asked. She brushed her blonde hair aside to reveal blue eyes smeared with mascara.

"Riley, honey…" she began. I waited. My Grandma wrapped her arms around her and rubbed her back. I looked at Lucas and slipped my hand back into his.

"Riley..." said Rachel. "Riley, something happened to Maya."


End file.
